Nebraska was back on the practice field on Tuesday afternoon as the Huskers continued preparations for Saturday’s key Big Ten Legends Division matchup with Michigan State at Memorial Stadium. Nebraska practiced in pads for about two hours inside the Hawks Championship Center and on the Ed and Joyanne Gass practice fields.

Offensive coordinator Tim Beck addressed the media after practice. He said a Michigan State defense that leads the nation in rushing defense, pass efficiency defense, total defense and opponent third-down percentage will be a challenge for the Husker offense. But Beck was encouraged by the offense’s late-game performance in a come-from-behind win at Michigan last Saturday.

“I thought our guys did some really good things on the field (on Saturday at Michigan), but we left some plays out there,” said Beck. “The guys played pretty well for the most part and handled the situation well, especially at the end.”

The offensive coordinator spoke highly of redshirt freshman quarterback Tommy Armstrong and the ‘it’ factor that he carries with confidence as he grows into the starting role.

“He made a couple of big throws for us and they were key,” Beck said. “I thought he played really well, handled himself well, made good decisions back there and didn’t panic.”

Nebraska will return to the practice field on Wednesday afternoon. Saturday’s matchup between Nebraska and the 14th-ranked Spartans is set for a 2:30 p.m. kickoff at Memorial Stadium. The game will be televised on ABC.